Christian Nationalist Mischief in Iowa
A Bill Has Passed The Iowa House to Allow Christian Chaplains in Public Schools
HR 884 - Iowa’s Christian Chaplain Bill
You had to know this was coming. The Iowa House passed HF 884 which allows public schools to “hire” religious chaplains. The vote was 57-39. It is on fast-track to the Iowa Senate.
This represents yet another cog in the ongoing attack on the separation of church and state, and the diminution of Iowa’s public schools via Project 2025. The bill's floor manager, Rep. Barb Kniff McCulla, R-Pella, uses the spurious argument about protecting children. She said the measure would go a long way "to protect our youth and make them successful."
Protect them from what? (She didn’t say) What evidence-based information shows that hiring religious chaplains will make students more successful? (It doesn’t exist so she couldn’t produce it)
I suggest that this bill and resulting action of placing so-called Christian Chaplains in public schools has nothing to do with protecting students or making them more successful. It has everything to do with promoting a version of Christian Nationalism rooted in Dominionist theology.
Rep. Elinor Levin, D-Iowa City, points out the concerns this bill presents beyond the obvious breach of the Constitution.
We are talking about a bill that has no consideration for parental consent in having a child meet with a chaplain. We are talking about a bill that has no consideration for accreditation of a chaplain, training of a chaplain. We are talking about a bill that makes no prohibition on evangelizing within a school building. This, in my opinion, is a dangerous bill.
It is indeed dangerous, but Iowans need to know that this bill did not originate in Iowa. It comes from a national bill-mill that turns out copycat versions of these types of bills. That is the trail I will follow in this column.
This Is Copy Cat Legislation
Dr. Thomas Lecaque, an Associate Professor of history at Grand View University in Des Moines, recently (April 8) published an op-ed in the “Iowa Starting Line.” His research provides an outstanding understanding of the origins of this legislation. I am using his initial research and diving a bit deeper into a couple of organizations that he cites.
Iowa is on a fast-track to enacting Project 2025 in its education system. It started several years ago but is now picking up speed under the Trump Administration. If you want a preview of where Iowa is going then just look at these states where Project 2025 has been a reality for many years: Florida, Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. Almost every Christian Nationalist bill proposed in Iowa has a model bill in one or more of these states.
This is a national effort, not a local one.
The Role of the National Association of Christian Lawmakers
There is an organization that is creating “model legislation” for any state willing to become a Christian Nationalist stronghold. The group is called the National Association of Christian Lawmakers (NACL). The opening photo of this column is a group of “Christian lawmakers” holding an “Appeal to Heaven Flag” which is the banner of Christian Nationalism throughout the country. They are not trying to hide their goals, intentions, and mission.
NACL has legislative members in 31 states, and touts a dozen “model laws” that its members can introduce “in legislative bodies around the country.” NACL previously made four of its model laws public — including the Texas-style anti-abortion bill and a bill to mandate the display of “In God We Trust” in public buildings.
The group’s advisory board includes Christian Nationalist heavy weights such as onetime presidential candidate Mike Huckabee — the former governor of Arkansas and father of the current governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders — Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, Family Research Council president Tony Perkins, and Mat Staver, president of Liberty Counsel.
With this line up you can see where this is going.
You can find the model legislation for promoting school chaplains here. Florida, Texas and Louisiana have already adopted such legislation, and Iowa is closing in rapidly to join them. The text of these bills is non-coincidentally similar.
“Christian Lawmakers” Violates “No Religious Test”
Forgive me if I get hung up on language, but I think this is important. To call an organization “Christian Lawmakers” immediately flies into trouble Constitutionally.
The No Religious Test Clause, found in Article VI of the U.S. Constitution, prohibits the government from requiring religious tests as a condition for holding public office. This clause ensures that individuals' religious beliefs cannot be used to exclude them from public service. It was included in the Constitution to prevent the government from establishing a state-sponsored religion and to guarantee equal opportunity for all citizens to hold public office, regardless of their religious belief.
What if there were an organization called “Muslim Lawmakers?” “Buddhist Lawmakers” “Atheist Lawmakers.” All would be suspect because lawmaking in the United States is not a religious process.
The No Religious Test Clause does not prohibit a Christian, atheist, Buddhist or Muslim from seeking office. Anyone who is a citizen can do so. However, to call yourself a “Christian lawmaker” gets the emphasis backward. Better to say, “I am a lawmaker who is a Christian.” “I am a lawmaker who is Buddhist.” And so on.
In other words, your identity as a lawmaker is not connected to a religion. To place one’s religious identity before “lawmaker” implies that you are going to be making law according to your religious tradition.
But, that is precisely the goal of NACL. Here is their stated mission:
THE MISSION OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHRISTIAN LAWMAKERS IS TO BRING FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL LAWMAKERS TOGETHER IN SUPPORT OF CLEAR BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES BY MEETING REGULARLY TO DISCUSS MAJOR ISSUES, PROPOSE MODEL STATUTES, ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS TO ADDRESS MAJOR POLICY CONCERNS FROM A BIBLICAL WORLD VIEW.
All caps are original, in case we couldn’t hear them clearly. Their goal is clear, they are not hiding anything. There purpose is to impose a “biblical world view” on legislation which would ultimately establish a religion in the United States in opposition to the establishment clause of the Constitution.
I suspect if Muslims had a similar organization whose purpose is to establish a Muslim caliphate in the US, there would be an immediate outcry and calls for dismantling such an association. Rightly so…why no outcry for the NACL?
Who “Credentials” Christian Chaplains?
Let’s go back to the Iowa School Chaplain bill and talk about how these folks will be “credentialed.” Under the bill, schools "may establish qualifications, credentialing and other requirements related to chaplains who are employed or engaged pursuant to this section."
Rep. Brooke Boden R-Indianola commented "If a school wants to make sure that a chaplain is appropriately credentialed, it is their responsibility to make sure they’re credentialed. That’s local control. That’s what we gave them in the bill."
Wait, who is doing the credentialing? There is currently only one Christian Chaplain credentialing program in the United States. It is called the National School Chaplain Association located in Norman, Oklahoma. NSCA offers a “certification program” through Oral Roberts University. It is described as a “rigorous online certification program” but in reality it is an 8-week, three-credit-hour course offered by ORU.
It isn’t about local control.
Unlike school counselors and social workers who need the equivalent of a master’s degree and continuous updating courses, religious school chaplains can gain certification in one, eight-week course through ORU. Voila, you’re a Christian Chaplain.
The Goal is Proselytizing
Not just any old chaplain, mind you. This program is designed to produce evangelical-Christian Nationalist chaplains who are not interested in an ecumenical approach, but in pushing a singular political-theological ideology that views all other religions as false, promotes intolerance for anything but straight marriages, condemns abortion regardless of the circumstances, and is designed to steer target students into conversion. It is proselytizing 101.
If this sounds like a harsh judgment, I’ll point to Dr. Lecaque’s article. Based on his research, here is what we know about NSCA:
The NSCA is the rebranding of Mission Generation, Rocky Malloy’s company that wanted to proselytize in schools across the globe. The defeat of the amendment to ban that seems clear in that light. Malloy’s colorful background he says in his own biography that when he was younger he tried to overthrow both the Mexican and Bolivian governments – very quickly leads to a desire to push his own vision of Christianity into schools nationwide. And specifically Christianity – there is no vision for chaplains that do not follow his brand of it, which has a clear statement of faith and links to Oral Roberts University – and in a manner that is overtly Christian nationalist.
Why Do We “Need” Christian Chaplains? (We Don’t)
One question that the sponsors of the Iowa bill have not answered is the “why” question. Why do we need Christian chaplains in public schools? The NSCA website lists many reasons for their existence. On its home page, there is this statement”
“Every school deserves the support of a certified chaplain - someone who brings hope, stability, and care onto the campus.”
By implication then, public school staff are not bringing hope, stability and care to their campuses? This is a slap in the face to all those faithful public school teachers, administrators, counselors, and staff who work everyday to support, help, guide and teach Iowa’s young people. I know many of them and they care and they are top notch.
So…what else do they have?
Another goal of the NSCA from their website says this:
“School chaplain duties include but are not limited to prayer, counsel, and spiritual care for the school staff, the students, and their families.”
The spiritual nurture and care of students, teachers and families is a local private responsibility. Parents are in charge of this, not the public school. Public schools do not have a mission or mandate to provide religious care and instruction. Not every student comes from a home that is committed to the evangelical persuasion of faith. Having evangelical Christian chaplains undermines the religious training and faith of large portions of the public school audience. It undermines parental authority.
Additionally, public schools already have established relationships with local churches with whom they can call on in times of emergency or tragedy. This is especially important in small rural Iowa communities.
If a student or teacher dies unexpectedly, or if a student commits suicide, schools know who they can call on to provide grief counseling and care from the local community. This is an important part of a school’s emergency plans. If a local youth pastor is called upon to provide grief counseling with students, they likely already know and have a relationship with some of the students. There is no need for paid Christian chaplains.
That leads to another thorny problem…the legislation allows schools to “hire” Christian Chaplains. How is having a paid Christian Chaplain on staff not crossing the line of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment? If they are paid school staff, what does that mean? Will they be evaluated commensurate with how other professional staff are evaluated? If so, by what standard? A Christian one? This problem reeks Constitutionally all the way to the Supreme Court.
Finally, not all churches and different Christian denominations are on board with this bill. Both the Episcopal Diocese and the Iowa Conference of the United Methodist Church have signed briefs against it. They understand the danger that evangelical proslyetizing poses to public school students, and the encroachment on the separation of church and state.
Here is what I can say with certainty that Iowa public schools need: they need more funding to hire qualified counselors, librarians, more teachers and better facilities. In the words of Dr. Lecaque,
Iowa schools do, in fact, need more personnel – educators, staff members, people who support the fundamental objectives of public education. They do not need chaplains certified by a Christian nationalist outfit as part of a Christian nationalist organization’s push to violate the Establishment Clause.
It isn’t too late to contact your state senator. Here is a link with their contact information. Let your voices be heard:
https://www.legis.iowa.gov/legislators/senate
I am a proud member of the Iowa Writers Collaborative. There are over 80 writers who are some of the best in the business. You can find the whole list of Collaborative Writers here.
Good insight! Thanks for sharing! Here is an recent post I wrote that’s may be in your wheelhouse https://leadershipinchange10.substack.com/p/check-out-the-5-ai-discernment-rules?r=39yk2m&utm_medium=ios
I’m guessing that “certification” doesn’t apply to any religion except what goes for Christianity these days